by Hallie Miller
"Finally!" Anna jumped up on the couch, doing her own little dance of excitement.
"What is it, Anna?" Gabe entered the room as Anna pumped her little fists in the air, twirling a circle, and shaking her behind. He smiled when he saw her, watching her sweet little body move through the air. Before he could laugh, she lost her footing and took a head-first dive off of the front of the couch toward the coffee table. Reaching her just in time, he snagged her around the waist and stood her up in front of him. "Jesus, Anna. What on earth is going on? You nearly cracked your head on the table."
"I'm fine," Anna laughed, looking up at her handsome fiancé. She couldn't believe she was engaged to the gorgeous man towering over her. Life couldn't get any better right now. "Guess what?!"
Gabe could feel the excitement rolling off her body and chuckled at her display. "What, honey?"
"I just got an email from Sammy, and she's coming to visit!"
"Sammy, your old college roommate?"
"Geez, Gabe, we're not old ladies. We only graduated two years ago."
Gabe raised an eyebrow at her sarcasm. "Watch the 'tude, young lady. You know what I mean."
"Sorry," Anna muttered, glancing up to see if he was still giving her the look. "I've been trying to get her to visit for almost a year now, and she finally agreed."
Gabe led Anna into the kitchen and pulled out a chair for her. "That's great, honey. When is she coming?"
"I don't know. She said really soon though. We're going to have a blast! I'll take her riding, we can go hiking, and I'll take her to all the local shops. It's going to be amazing! We haven't hung out in so long!"
Gabe walked toward the coffee maker to start brewing as he listed to Anna's excitement. He loved her spirit. She was always upbeat, happy, and smiling. He only worried her unbridled excitement would lead her to doing things without thinking, which seemed to be a consistent problem for her. She constantly worried him with her spur of the moment adventures, and he'd warned her plenty of times already that she needed to be more careful when she acted. He couldn't bear it if something bad were to happen to her. Before she went on another outburst about her future escapades with her old roommate, he turned around to face her, crossing his arms and leaning back against the counter.
"Anna, you know the same rules apply when she is here, right?"
"What do you mean?" The look on Anna's face was nothing short of shock. He couldn't mean what she thought he meant. There was no way he would do that with her friend staying in their house.
"You know what I mean. Things are not going to change because we have a guest. If you feel like it's something you don't want to disclose to her, then you need to be on your best behavior while she's here. Do you hear me?"
"But Gabe! That would be so embarrassing! Please tell me you wouldn't actually spank me while Sammy's here," Anna whined, her face turned bright red just thinking about the possible embarrassment.
"Anna, we've been together over a year now. You know by now what earns you a spanking and what doesn't. If you don't feel comfortable telling Sammy about our relationship then you know what to do. I will not argue with you about this." Gabe turned back around to pour the coffee into two cups, adding cream and sugar. He heard a huff of air and a grunt from behind him. Turning back around with the steaming mugs, he placed them on the table and leaned over until he was a foot from her pouting face. "Do you need a reminder right now of how to behave?"
"No sir," Anna shook her head, lowering it in to her chest. She knew she would do everything possible to make sure a situation like that did not happen while Sammy was here. She would die of embarrassment before she let that happen.
"Good girl. Let's have some coffee, and then we can go for a ride. What do you say?"
He chucked her under the chin, pulling her face up to his. She couldn't resist him when he called her that. Her insides melted when she heard those words on his lips. She didn't know why she was wired so differently, but she loved their relationship. That didn't meant she wanted anyone else to know he spanked her when she disobeyed him; she certainly wasn't quite ready to be that blatant about their unique arrangement.
Sammy sat at her computer waiting for a return email. It wouldn't be long before James would come back looking for her. She needed to leave as soon as possible, but she didn't want to scare Anna with the situation. She could tell her about it when she got to Montana... well, she could tell her if she needed to. She wanted to put the whole situation behind her and move on.
There was a loud Ping! heralding the arrival of the email. It read:
Hey Sammy!
So excited you can come! I can't wait to see you! You are going to love Gabe, and his ranch is absolutely spectacular. I always thought I would miss the city, but it is so gorgeous out here. I just know you will love it too. Please let me know when you plan to come. The sooner the better! Email me or text me your flight info so we can pick you up at the airport. So excited!
Love ya!
Anna
Sammy pulled up the Delta website and booked a one way flight out to Montana. At this point, she wasn't planning on coming back here. She wasn't sure where she was going to go, but maybe she could find a job out there in Montana. Throwing together some clothes into two large suitcases, she sent a quick text to Anna, hoping she wouldn't be too thrown off by her last minute plans: Found a red-eye flight for tomorrow night. Only one layover. Says I should arrive in Billings at 11:23am. Is that ok? A reply was quickly received to say that Anna would be waiting or her at the airport.
Sammy printed off her flight confirmation, threw it in her purse, and glanced around the room checking to see what she may have forgotten to pack. She didn't know if she would have a chance to come back the apartment. She didn't want to risk running into him. She was prepared to forgo most of her things. All she needed was to get out Baltimore before James got out of jail. She knew he would only be in for another couple days before they released him. Thankfully, she had enough time for her face to heal completely before going to see Anna. She knew her friend would flip if she knew the whole situation. Wiping a tear from her cheek, she strode out the front door. A new life beckoned.
Sammy gazed out the window towards the wing of the plane. She watched the lights of the Baltimore skyline grow smaller and smaller into the distance. Breathing a sigh of relief, she closed her eyes and leaned her head back. What would Anna think about her suddenly changing her mind to come visit? Anna had never met James; she'd moved out west two months before Sammy and James met at a local bar down by the harbor.
At the thought of James, Sammy remembered what he used to be like, the charming guy she fell in love with. At first, he was a gentleman, chivalrous like someone she pictured in the movies; he held the door for her, gave her his jacket when she shivered, and he always paid for their dates, despite Sammy's protest that she also worked for a living. She didn't know what went wrong. About six months into the relationship, they got into a fight about something small and James pushed her up against a wall. After the incident, Sammy tried reasoning that they'd both been out drinking before they came home, and she blamed his violence on the alcohol. But it wasn't long after that he slapped her for not having dinner ready when he arrived home from work. That was when it hit her: she never expected to be that girl, the one who stayed, the one who always made an excuse for her boyfriend abusing her.
With her measly income as a kindergarten teacher, she had enough trouble paying back student loans and she was scared to fall back on her own. Once she and James moved in together, he took care of most of the bills, giving her an opportunity to save a little money. It wasn't until he knocked her unconscious a week ago for spilling red wine on the floor that she finally realized he was not the same person she started dating last August. When she woke up from her concussion, she found herself in the hospital, glancing around at an empty room. Since her parents passed away in a car accident her first year in college, the only close friend she had was Anna who lived three thousand miles away in Montana. She never felt more alone than when the nurse asked who she should call to come pick her up.
Finally admitting to herself that she had to get away from James, she explained the entire situation to the police officer investigating her appearance in the hospital. Domestic violence seemed obvious to him, and Sammy explained everything in detail, giving him enough evidence to hold James in jail until he could post bond. Unfortunately, he couldn't do much after that, besides telling her to file a restraining order, stay with a friend, and be cautious with her surroundings. The rest would have to wait until James went to trial. Sammy had nodded in understanding, explaining her only close friend lived across country. The officer gave her his card and took her information, instructing her that he would contact her with any further details and whether she would be needed to testify again beyond her written statement. That was nearly ten days ago, and she thanked God she had left when she did, because once James found out she was pressing charges, she just knew he would come after her. She shivered thinking about his impetuous anger.
"Would you like a blanket?"
Sammy glanced up to see a smiling flight attendant with navy blue blankets and neck pillows lying over her forearm. "Thanks. That'd be great." Curling up in the blanket, she closed her eyes, trying to push the thoughts of James and the unpleasant past out of her mind. Maybe the open country was just what she needed. She knew one thing was for sure - she was never going back to Baltimore.
"Anna! I've got to go meet Mason at the jail. I'll be back in a little while!" Gabe bellowed from the bottom of the stairs.
Anna ran down the hallway from the bedroom, sliding on her socks before reaching the top of the stair landing. "Gabe," she whined, "we're supposed to pick up Sammy by 11:30. Why do you have to go to the jail anyway?"
Gabe smiled at his fiancée, cute as ever in his oversized t-shirt and socks. His shirt hung all the way down to her knees and her hair was piled high in a messy bun on the top of her head. He wanted to do nothing more at that moment than hop back into bed with her. He sighed, thinking about all he had to do today. "Tony drank too much at the bar last night and was arrested for public intoxication. I need him this week. We can't be short a ranch hand when I've got to get all the new cows checked and tagged this week. I've got to bail him out."
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